The Ring
by Zippy-Wings
Summary: James has just asked Lily a very important question. What will the answer be? Sequel to The Locket, can stand alone.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Okay…this is the sequel to The Locket…called The Ring. And again, it's really the second semester of vocab for me…so please bear with me here…oh, yeah, and please review!!

**Disclaimer:** Sigh. I do not own any characters that JK Rowling mentions in her stories. Some are mine, but none are mine in this chapter.

Chapter 1

"Lily Evans, love of my life, will you marry me?" James asked, looking up into the sparkling emerald eyes he loved so much.

Lily looked down at the open box in shock. The whole Quidditch field had gone deathly quiet. She glanced around at her classmates, some of them had their diplomas already, and others were waiting expectantly to walk across the stage. Everyone's parents had turned up for the graduation, not to mention the entire student body and staff of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. She looked up at the improvised screen, still projecting pictures of Lily's time at Hogwarts for all to see. When she turned her head the other way, she saw Sirius, Remus, and Peter standing behind the projector, which had obviously been charmed so that it would work at Hogwarts. They were smiling, looking calmly at her, waiting for her answer.

"James, I," Lily began.

"Of course, I thought you wouldn't want to," James whispered in a lamentable tone.

"No, James. I'd love to! It's just so…sudden. I really didn't expect this," Lily said, fidgeting with her apparel.

"And that's not a good thing?"

"It is a good thing. So yes, James, Potter. I will marry you."

The whole Quidditch pitch burst into applause as Lily said this. She noticed that even the Slytherins, albeit grudgingly, joined in.

That evening, Lily walked alone to the Astronomy Tower, thinking of what lay ahead of her and absentmindedly twirling the slim gold ring set with rubies, diamonds, and emeralds now perched on her finger. When she reached the battlements, she looked out over the silent grounds and to the heavens, taking in the partially veiled moon. She turned as she heard someone climbing the stairs that spiraled downwards a few feet behind her, and saw Remus approaching.

"I thought I might find you here," he said softly.

"I suppose you thought right," Lily replied with a small smile.

"James is wondering where you are, so I said I'd try and find you."

"Thanks, Remus. I just needed to look over the grounds one more time before I left Hogwarts…and I wanted it to just be me and my thoughts for a while."

"And what are your thoughts saying to you?"

"That I'm totally unprepared for life, I haven't secured a job, and I'm getting married in an undetermined amount of time."

"That's a lot to be thinking about on such an emotionally draining day," Remus commented.

"I suppose, but some thoughts just come barreling through my mind and turn everything upside down."

"Speaking of your wedding," Remus said quietly, closely inspecting the edge of the tower, "Will I be invited to your wedding?"

"What makes you think you wouldn't?"

"Well, the Minister of Magic usually attends magical weddings, and, I don't know, he might look down on an underling like me."

"Oh, come on, Remus, don't talk like that. If you think that someone like that would scorn you at my wedding…I mean, you're one of James' best friends…and you've always been there to listen to me rant and rave about every insignificant thing under the sun…if they won't accept you at a magical wedding, then I'll just have to convince James to have a muggle wedding. They're quite lovely, really. And it's what I dreamed of before I came to Hogwarts, and kind of what I assumed I'd have, so…"

"Really? You mean that, Lils?"

"Of course, Remus. Now, I think that I'd better get back to my groom-to-be and start annoying him with all of those lovely wedding plans," Lily smirked.

As Lily walked down the stairs to her dorm, she couldn't help but notice that Remus didn't follow. Upon entering her dorm, Lily found James sprawled out on one of the couches, staring at an empty silver bowl that had, just that morning, been filled with fruit. Lily sat down next to her fiancé and sighed, leaning lazily against him.

"James, where did all of the fruit go?" she asked, mocking a motherly voice and staring into the concave shape.

"Sirius came while you were out and about," James explained, still staring, transfixed, at the bowl. "I don't think I've ever seen someone eat that much fruit in five minutes."

Lily began to giggle quietly as an idea hit her. "Well, if my fiancé doesn't start taking an interest in planning our wedding, I may have to trade him in for someone who will. Do you think they'd give me a refund on my money?"

James continued to seem to be construing the bowl, but began to laugh. "Who would you trade me in for?" He asked, his eyes twinkling with mirth. "Some servile git?"

"Of course not. I think I'll go for some tall guy with glasses, hazel eyes, and black hair that sticks up in every direction."

"Sounds good to me," James said. "In the interim, let's start planning your wedding to this incredibly handsome guy."

"Really? You'll help me plan my wedding? Oh, James, you don't have to, you know," she laughed.

"Let's see…we'll start with the basics. Where and when?"

"I was thinking even more basic than that. I don't know much of anything about magical weddings."

"Right. Well, when a couple gets married at a magical wedding, a charm is placed on each ring. We get to choose what is put in the enchantment, because it's there to remind us why we got married, incase it begins to fall apart."

"Is it true that the Minister of Magic is usually there?"

"The Minister is usually the one to place the charm, but he doesn't have to be. If he doesn't do the charm, he's usually just there for show. Why?"

"From what I've heard, the Minister isn't very kind towards werewolves. He kind of treats them like vermin."

"Good point. But unless we have a magical ceremony, our marriage won't be acknowledged in the magical world, so basically it wouldn't be legal."

"We can't have Remus treated like that, James. What if we got someone else to place the charm, and didn't make it really public that we were going to get married."

"Something tells me that's gonna be kinda hard, Lils. I'm the only child of two aurors."

"What is this? Some sort of conspiracy against us?"

"Nah, Lils, it's just the complications of marriage. We'll work it out, I promise."

"Okay, so the Minister doesn't have to do the enchantment. Who else could?"

"Usually, it's the father of the groom if it's not the Minister."

"Right. But that can't exactly happen here. So who else does it?"

"The godfather of the groom can as well, or a close family friend."

"Is your godfather still alive?"

"Yes."

"And your close family friend?"

"That would be Albus Dumbledore."

**A/N: **Okay, I know, lame chapter. Sue me. I really do love reviews though, so if you would all be so kind to do so…and for those of you who are not feeling creative enough…here are some "auto-reviews" just to get you started.

-What kind of story is this? I hate it!

-This story makes absolutely no sense to me.

-Yay! A sequel! I love it! Update soon!

-Good job!

-Update soon!

-OR-

You can be creative! Have fun and click that little button that says 'GO'!


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** OMG, you guys, I am SO SORRY I haven't had a chance to update, but it's been bedlam….I have the next one written, I'll update soon!

**Disclaimer:** Sorry. I wish I could make Deathly Hallows come out sooner.

The weeks wore on, and Lily and James kept planning for their wedding. It was on a bright Wednesday afternoon that James found himself on the couch amid stacks of papers, each containing a plethora of names.

"Must we keep augmenting the list of people that need to be informed of this event?"

"Just think, James. We already have so much done by now. Don't you want to prevail? To finish with all of this _horrible_ planning?"

"Are you admitting that it's boring to do this? Can I have a recording of that?"

"No, James," Lily said, sighing. "I just understand that planning isn't really your thing. I appreciate your putting up with it."

"Anything for my Lilykins," James said, pulling off a remarkably good visage of sweetness.

"And what would you do, may I ask, if I suddenly decided that you were just full of it and that I didn't want to marry you anymore?"

"I would refuse to accept it, kidnap you, and run away and marry you anyway."

"Ooh, you mean elope?"

"We could do that, but I wouldn't. My remaining family would kill me."

"Okay, then. Who do you want to place the charm? Professor Dumbledore, or your godfather?"

"My godfather is not really very good with words, but I feel like I should ask him to do it anyway."

"Well, we already know that Professor Dumbledore is rhetorically gifted. Maybe we can invite your godfather, and if he asks you why you didn't ask him to do it, you can blame it on me."

"Works for me, I guess," James shrugged.

"Who do you want to be your best man?"

"Sirius," James said promptly. "That was one of the promises we made when we wrote the Marauder Code."

"Marauder Code?" Lily asked, puzzled.

"Yeah. You know…we won't interpose when another Marauder wants to pull a prank on, oh, say," James coughed, "Snape or Malfoy."

"Okay…" Lily said. "And this has what to do with being each other's best man in your weddings?"

"Well, Sirius is my best man, and I'm Sirius' best man. If one of us is not able to attend for some reason, then Remus gets the choice, although he has to legally decline in a magical wedding, and Peter says he dislikes weddings."

"Why?"

"He wouldn't say, but I think it had something to do with the fact that his mother never married."

"Right. Um, okay, I suppose I should ask Petunia to be my maiden of honor, and then Alanna and Alina could be my brides maids."

"I thought you and Petunia didn't get along."

"We don't, but I'm sure that she would ask me to be her matron of honor if she got married after this."

"Alright. How do you propose we go and ask her? Just show up on her doorstep?"

"No, I'll write her using Muggle Post and ask her if I could come and talk to her over tea, because there's some important stuff we need to talk about."

"And when are you going to tell your parents? They weren't at graduation, right?"

"No, they were, so they know."

"What!! They were there and you didn't introduce me to them?! Now I have to go and apologize for being so rude to them! Lily! How could you!"

"They pulled me aside afterwards to congratulate me, and told me to wait until you realized you hadn't met them. They find it rather amusing."

"Well, I don't! It's not what I call funny, screwing up on one of the most important times of my life because I didn't think that muggle parents would be able to come."

"It's okay, James. Don't worry about it. Meet me at my flat tomorrow morning and we'll go to Petunia's for lunch and my parent's place for dinner. I think that Petunia is still living with that lummox, Vernon Dursley."

James sighed as he looked at the clock and realized that it was actually very late. "Sounds good. Goodnight, love," he said, giving her a kiss on the cheek.

"Goodnight, James," Lily said softly as she closed the door.

The next morning dawned too bright and much too early for Lily's liking. She found that there was much to be done before her venture into the world of Petunia's wrathfulness. Lily ran around like a hen with her head cut off that morning, first looking for a piece of paper with suggestions for instigating a civil conversation with Petunia, then later for a missing earring, then for her favorite shoes. Luckily, when James arrived, Lily had just finished getting ready, and the pair apparated to the corner of a tightly subdivided street in Surrey. James looked at Lily questioningly, and Lily rolled her eyes.

"It's almost like it's a contest to see who can have the squarest yard and the biggest car, not to mention the perfect flowers and cleanest windows. It drives me mad."

"Lily, calm down and remember why you're here. You are going to ask your big sister to be part of your wedding. Not to get after her and her, um, boyfriend about some petty exploits that we both disagree with. Right?"

Lily drew a deep breath. You're right. I'm the luckiest seventeen year old alive right now. This is a happy time. Think positive."

"Exactly! You're getting the hang of all of this positive stuff."

"Oh, shut up, James," Lily said, slapping his arm as they walked up the cobbled path of Number 4. Lily shot a sidelong look and raised a shaking hand towards the doorbell with one finger extended.

"Ding – dong!" Rang the normal, dull tone of the doorbell at Number 4, Privet Drive. Lily and James watched apprehensively as a thin, distorted figure moved towards the door through the rippled glass. The handle turned slowly and the door opened, revealing Lily's skinny, slightly horse-faced sister Petunia.

"Lily!" Petunia hissed, slightly venomously. "What are you doing here!"  
"We came to talk to you," Lily said.

"We?"

"Oh, sorry. This is James, my fiancé."

"Since when?"

"A couple of weeks ago," Lily explained patiently.

"I'm sorry…James, is it?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm James Potter. It's nice to meet you in person, Petunia," James said, sticking out his hand to shake Petunia's.

Petunia looked at James' hand like it was contagious and chose to ignore his kind gesture. "Why would you want to marry a freak like my sister?"

"I love her."

"Do you now?"

"Petunia, dear! Who's at the door?" came the deep, grunt-like voice of Vernon Dursley.

"It's my sister!" Petunia called back, now ushering James and Lily inside as though she was afraid someone would see them together.

It was then that Lily saw it. "Petunia! Congratulations! I didn't know you were engaged as well!"

Petunia merely looked at Lily witheringly. "Please, freak face. I'm married."

"You never told me."

"Because, you would have brought all of your freak friends to my wedding, and I didn't want it so shamefully marred."

"Well, then," James said abruptly, "I suppose you wouldn't want to be seen in company of said freaks either, which defeats the purpose of our coming here today." James took Lily by the hand and steered her out the door.

James continued to lead Lily down the street, determined to get away from that house. "I feel sorry for any child of theirs," he said. "To be brought up in such an environment that shows hatred and animosity towards anybody whom as not wronged you is just terrible. James and Lily had reached an empty park, and Lily flopped down on the grass.

"Oh, I almost forgot," James said, removing a piece of parchment from his pocket. "This is a petition that I drew up last night. It's to support werewolf rights," James expounded.

"That's awesome, James! Can I be the first to sign it?"

"Of course you can, Lils," James said, taking out a short but elegant peacock quill out of his pocket.

**A/N:** Thanks for reading my story!! I know…it probably sucks, but would you pretty please with a cherry on top leave me a review? I'd really appreciate it…big huge cyber-chocolate bars to everyone who does! (If you don't want to be creative, here are some more of my auto-reviews…just copy and paste what you like…)

-What kind of story is this? I hate it!

-This was a really lame chapter.

-Wow! That was creative…I loved it when

-Good job!

-Update soon!

-OR-

You can be creative! Have fun and click that little button that says 'GO'!


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